[You have received 50,000 coins.]
Nice. But where's my new title?
['Maybe'. Not, 'You will'. But you get 50,000 coins. That's enough for you.]
He gritted his teeth. Ah, he's been scammed by his own system.
[You GOT 50,000 coins. That's worth… a lot. Stop sulking.]
Whatever.
A thin blue thread of light coiled out from beneath Elian's boots, weaving across roots and rock until it drew a perfect circle beneath the treeline. The air snapped, sharp and metallic, like the tang of copper between teeth.
[You have successfully claimed territory.]
[Duration: 72 hours.]
[Do you wish to lock Access?]
Yes.
[Access: Locked.]
[Tip: Be more open-minded.]
The sound that came next wat the wet slap of muscle against mud, the frantic crush of paws and claws tearing away from him.
The monsters bolted out the trees, like something bigger had ripped through their instincts and made them run.
Fur and scales blurred past the trees, eyes rolling white, bodies shoving one another in the panic to escape the circle's boundary.
A wolf-thing's jaw split unnaturally wide as it sprinted, its teeth clattering to the ground before it vanished into the underbrush.
Even the carrion birds abandoned their branches, spiraling away until their caws were swallowed by the treeline.
They seemed to be… exiting the forest, all at once.
Maybe this is the effect after a territory has been claimed. He thought.
His system pinged again, blocking his vision from a very shocked and panicked Crix.
[Constellation 'Eye of the Board' is intrigued.]
[Constellation 'The Hunter Of Lost Lines' hums a funeral march in advance.]
[Constellation 'Devil Maker' made a remark about your nasty stick.]
[Can't blame them.]
Elian rolled his eyes. My stick works just fine, suckerbot.
[Excuse you.]
He flexed his fingers once, feeling the claim settle into him like a nail driven through the spine.
Crix had gone pale. For someone who layered every sentence with grinning weeb garbage, the silence dragging out of his throat was louder than anything else.
He slowly turned to Elian, his mouth quivering, reminding Elian of a sick panda crying. Which was weird.
Crix wanted to ask why the creatures were leaving the forest, but something more lingered in his mouth. He nudged Elian on his side.
"Oi. You weren't the one who clicked 'yes', were you? I'm— I'm seeing a lot of weird notifications from my system and… it says someone from OUR world made the first move!"
Ah, I never asked if he's a black piece or not. I guess he was.
[It was obvious. You really must increase your Intelligence stat and change your dumb stick.]
Elian ignored his system's remark.
"Um, yeah. I did. What's wrong with that?"
Elian side-eyed him, watching his hands twitch with the need to gesture, to point, to wring some of the fear out of his fingers.
"Not that I'm judging!" Crix went on, his grin jerking into place. "B-but… you do know about the prophecy, right?"
"Prophecy? What prophecy?"
Crix clutched his head, groaning out loud as he angrily kicked his feet against the soil. "D-dudeeeee. I thought EVERYONE knew about the prophecy! Why would you just—"
Elian tilted his head to the side, confused. He shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly. He hadn't heard anything about a prophecy of not clicking 'yes'. It was a quite absurd prophecy for him… whatever it was.
Who wouldn't accept to start a 'game' if they're being offered 50,000 coins.
Elian proudly checked his balance. He smiled widely, a drool almost forming up his mouth. But something deep stung his heart, leaving in a bittersweet taste.
Ah, mom would have been happy I got this much money.
But his sulking was cut short by Crix loud shuffling.
Crix decided to go into details by bringing out his… thing-a-magic. A book covered in a few mishaps and explaining about the prophecy.
The prophecy was new. It had slithered out of the White Court weeks ago. Whispered by an SSS-rank Bishop with psychic abilities.
It traveled on traded steel and dirty coin until even mercenaries and merchants in the Black world carried pieces of it.
[Constellation 'Eye Of The Board' leans in closer.]
"Apparently, it was said that some decision would wage war between us and the white pieces. So we were warned to not fall for any tricks."
Elain found the prophecy… stupid.
[I agree for once.]
Elian filed it away. Prophecy, bishops, whispers crossing worlds. His eyes narrowed on Crix. The merchant was annoying, but his information… useful. He kept him.
Crix stood up, dirt strained under his boots as he stretched, flexing his inaudible muscles.
But then he paused, squeezing his face in confusion.
His eyes went wide, almost popping out of his sockets, he suddenly grabbed Elian by the arm, who was now shuffling his feets from the pressure.
"Why are you—"
Crix grip tightened on him, his eyes locked cold on him. "You… you claimed this place as your territory? How did you do that? Never in my ten years of work have I seen a pawn claim something," his voice barely a whisper. "You killed a monster mimick like it was nothing. Your profile's locked, you claimed a territory… no wonder those monsters fled."
Elain chuckled to himself. It was a reminder him. Pawns weren't supposed to be able to do this. Ever.
A pawn's purpose was simple: walk straight, die early. Used as meat shields and often discarded.
But he's mostly defective, isn't he?
A pawn shouldn't have a resurrection skill either.
Neither should he even have a sponsor.
A sponsor he didn't pick himself.
[You know… you can kill him and end things here.]
Crix grip loosened, dropping Elian onto the ground.
Elian groaned, dusting off his torn clothes. It was slightly discomforting to still be thrown like wet socks after adding a few points to his strength.
[Constellation 'The Hunter Of Lost Lines' finds you weirdly interesting.]
He looked up, glaring back at Crix. That idiot.
But Crix eyes sparkled, he hugged him and cooed over him like he was some weirdly beautiful antique found.
"OMG. You're even more cuter than my waifus now! Do you really don't want a contract? I can help you sell— I mean help. Help you. Such a valuable asset—"
Elian cringed, shoving Crix aside and taking two more steps away from the mad merchant.
Suddenly, a blast echoed past the forest.
It sounded like an explosion happened outside the territory.
The forest broke open ahead, daylight bleeding through shattered trunks. The air smelled of burning wood, something acrid curling in the back of his throat.
It created a clear opening for them, the skyscrapers bleeding through.
"Heyyyy, what's that?"
They both ran into the open air as they followed the last of lthe monsters streamed past them, fleeing into the city. Crix's sleeve brushed Elian's arm, his breath fast from the pace.
Then Elian saw him.
Aven stood in the scorched clearing, navy hair plastered to his temples with sweat. His grip was steady on the blade burning purple in his hand.
Their eyes locked.
"You," Aven said, voice low and edged, his breath uneven.
He tilted his head to the side, a bit stunned. His voice laced with confusion. "Didn't I bury you?"
The sword lifted, catching the smoke-stained light.
"You caused this."
And then, he smirked, a wild wicked grin spreading across his face. He stroked his hair, the smoky wind blowing past his cheeks and the chaos happening behind them dulled.
"I knew something was fishy about you."